Qatar sends relief mission to help flood affected in Nepal

23 Aug 2017 - 15:41

The Peninsula Online

Doha: Qatar Red Crescent (QRCS) has to Nepal in response to the recent floods, with funding from Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD). The intervention is coordinated with the Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS).

QRCS's Disaster Information Management Center (DIMC) was activated to monitor the situation and receive updates. Also, $250,000 was allocated from the Contingency Fund for initial response.

The mission will make needs assessment and deliver shelter, water, sanitation, and nonfood aid over three months, for the benefit of 4,000 families (20,000 people) in the most affected areas. The beneficiaries would be selected based on the lists prepared by the Nepal partners.

The aid to be distributed includes 8,000 tarpaulins, 4,000 mosquito nets, and 4,000 hygiene kits. The beneficiaries will be educated on how to use these supplies to promote hygiene and prevent the outbreak of communicable diseases, especially in crowded shelter locations.

During the past two weeks, Nepal has witnessed heavy and continuous rains in various parts of the country, causing landslides, damage to infrastructure (local markets, roads, and bridges), disruption of communication and aid delivery, power outages, and destruction of livestock and agricultural resources.

This emergency comes at a time when Nepal is still struggling to recover from the 2014 floods and 2015 earthquake, which much reconstruction and recovery work remaining to be done.

As per reports, 27 districts are affected by the recent floods, 19 of which are severely impacted. Tera, located in the south of Nepal, is the most affected region. The death toll has reached 141 people, in addition to 24 missing, 117 injured, 158,575 displaced people, 64,997 totally destroyed houses, and 120,129 partially destroyed houses.

Around 19,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) have shelter in 95 public locations, including schools, in six of the most affected areas. Many more are reported to be camping in informal shelters in other districts.

The number of affected households and, hence, IDPs is expected to increase significantly as the rain continues to fall and roads are cleared, enabling assessment to be performed. IDPs are in need of essential assistance including emergency shelter, nonfood items, water, sanitation, and hygiene.